A Sister as the Vessel
by WizMonCruWil
Summary: I watched Frozen again recently, and became excited remembering that the sequel is coming in Thanksgiving! I came up with this idea, set six years after the events of the first film. Will Elsa have the power to achieve happiness for more than just herself and her kingdom? Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1: Struggles

**Chapter 1: Struggles**

The Fall Festival of Arendelle was in full swing in the castle courtyard. Queen Elsa milled about, greeting her guests warmly. Behind her, she could hear her sister, Princess Anna, and brother-in-law, Sir Kristoff, being mobbed by their loyal subjects. Questions abounded the royal couple, one more than any other:

"Your Highness, when will we see a new heir for the throne?"

"Sir Kristoff, have you and the Princess considered trying again for children?"

Elsa breathed deeply and held her head higher as she continued to receive her subjects. She was proud of her family for how the persistent questioning did not seem to bother them. If anything, she was more bothered by the questions... and all the more so by the vague answers Anna kept having to field.

Kristoff and Anna's wedding six years ago had been cause for great celebration in Arendelle. After The Great Thaw, as the bizarre winter-during-summer had come to be known, the couple had married in an intimate ceremony in the mountains, surrounded by Kristoff's troll family. The Queen herself had officiated; the only other guests aside from the trolls had been Olaf and Sven. A more splashy wedding had followed for the kingdom's subjects.

And ever since that time, Anna and Kristoff had desperately wanted a child.

It wasn't for lack of trying, as far as Elsa was aware - that's what married people did, and though that didn't fall within her exact... romantic tastes, she knew Kristoff was never anything but a gentleman to her baby sister. When a little bundle of joy had again and again failed to appear, Anna had done her best to brush it off. She and Kristoff were in their twenties; there was plenty of time yet. Kristoff was only slightly less adept at hiding his disappointment, but his duties as the Arendelle Ice Master and Deliverer kept him fairly busy. During the winter season, he would take Sven into the mountains for harvesting, and there the pair would stay until the winds changed; Elsa knew that a cabin existed somewhere in the highlands for the motley duo. Those weeks were emotionally hard on Anna, spending nights in her bed without her husband, fretting for his safety. Elsa would always try to reassure her sister, saying that Kristoff had a damn fine head on his shoulders and knew what he was doing, but that didn't dismiss the possibility of an avalanche. Blizzards. Or worse.

Anna and Kristoff could hide their sadness and worry from their loyal subjects all they liked, but not from their beloved sister. Elsa's own worry was taking its toll on her duties as Queen.

If only there was some way that she could help them, as much as they had helped her come out of her isolation. Love her without conditions. Elsa commanded a decent sized kingdom and all of its armed forces. She was the mistress of some of the most powerful natural forces on the face of the Earth. Surely she could find the power to help her beloved family?

* * *

"Now, the next order of business is to decide upon the renewal of economic sanctions against the Southern Isles..." Kai, Elsa's Chief of Staff, was lecturing during the Queen's cabinet meeting, the Monday after the Festival.

Elsa tried her best to pay attention, but a bothersome migraine was settling into her forehead, and she rubbed her temple persistently.

"Milady?" Kai's voice prompted as the rest of her subordinates turned to her expectantly. "Sanctions against the Southern Isles?"

Elsa waved a hand. "Send them through. The day I lift those sanctions is the day I learn Prince Hans is dead in the ground." There had been plenty forgiveness to go around - forgiveness from Anna and Kristoff, forgiveness from her people. Forgiveness of herself. But Elsa would never forgive the men who had conspired to cast her from power and endanger her sister.

"Very good, milady," Kai cleared his throat. "Now, next on the agenda..."

"I wish to receive my subjects. Hear from the people," Elsa ordered flatly.

Kai blinked for a moment. "Now?"

"Yes, now. Prepare the throne room, please, Kai."

"As you wish, Your Majesty. Meeting adjourned."

Elsa had made it an official policy as Queen to receive her subjects in the throne room once a week, and hear of their troubles. It was usually an open-door, first-come, first-served event, except on the occasion when Elsa might wish to have an audience with a particular individual.

Elsa's subjects adored her, and would often thank her for her understanding and loving attentiveness by presenting her with a gift for her table - crops of the land and other delicacies. Sometimes, the children of Arendelle would come just to be in her presence.

"Any more in the queue?" Elsa whispered to Kai, as the latest farmer departed.

In answer, the castle crier stamped his scepter and announced, "Your Majesty - the Ice Master and Deliverer, Sir Kristoff!"

Kirstoff strode in, clad in his parka and with flakes of snow still covering nearly every inch of him. Elsa deflated in her throne in relief. He was home from another journey into the mountains; Anna would surely be pleased. This one had just been a weekend excursion, and no farther than Wandering Oaken's Trading Post and Sauna - only a few miles into the Arendellian hills.

Kristoff removed his cap and sank to one knee. "Your Majesty, I request an audience."

Elsa waved her hand deferentially, in approval. "What is your desire, young man?"

"I wish to address Her Majesty not as her loyal subject, but as her brother-in-law."

Elsa smiled affectionately. "Of course, Kristoff." She dismissed her courtiers. "Leave us." This was to be a family conversation, and a private one at that.

As soon as they were alone, Elsa and Kristoff warmly embraced. Upon first meeting him, Elsa had been deeply impressed by the adventurer. All the more so when he had come to her alone and asked her permission for her sister's hand in marriage. Kristoff had addressed the matter alone largely for two reasons: 1. Because he had heard the story of Anna's previous engagement and did not wish to upset the Queen with bad memories in the couple asking for her blessing together, and 2. As an opportunity for the pair to get to know one another better.

"Anna will be so happy you're home. Now, what troubles you, Kristoff?"

"If I may be so bold, Your Majesty... you trouble me."

Elsa raised an eyebrow in shock. "Indeed. May I ask why?"

"It is clear something weighs heavily on your mind, and Anna and I only wish to comfort you. Is it... your powers?" The last came in almost a whisper.

Elsa smiled. "No." She had gained extraordinary control over her powers in her acceptance of herself. But, she had to confess, her worry for her family had threatened snow and ice's involuntary emergence a time or two.

"Your duties as Queen?"

"No. I... Kristoff, I worry for you and Anna. I was greatly troubled by everyone's persistent questioning at the Fall Festival. Regarding... a baby. Or lack of one."

Kristoff's smile was warm, but heavy. Wrinkled with age. "Don't worry about us. It will happen in its own time."

"And how long will you keep telling yourself that and believing it?" Elsa asked pointedly.

Kristoff said nothing, swallowing palpably. "Elsa... being parents doesn't matter to me or Anna right now..."

"Please don't lie to me, Kristoff. And even if that were true, it matters to _me_!" The Queen's eyes threatened tears. "You've both done so much for me. I am the ruler of my own kingdom. I can control the most dangerous natural phenomena on the planet. But I can't help my own family find happiness?"

Kristoff hugged her. "Don't. No one has that kind of power - at least, not in this world."

"I should," Elsa gulped.

"Patience. We love that you care so much. Seeing the real you has been a joy to see... and when you're going to be an aunt, you'll be the first to know." Kristoff winked. "Gotta go. I promised Sven carrots." He kissed her on the cheek and departed. Only when the great doors to the throne room shut did Elsa break down in sobs.

All around her, the thin layer of frost crept onto the walls...


	2. Chapter 2: Strange Magic

**Chapter 2: Strange Magic**

Anna watched as her husband prepared for bed. Kristoff was very methodical as he removed his boots, hung up his ice pick. Hung them both in the closet. Unloaded his Flintlock flare gun - as far as Anna knew, he had only needed to discharge it once, very early on in his career. An avalanche had come upon Kristoff and Sven without warning and caught them unawares, nearly burying them both. He had been just a teenager then; his troll family had found and rescued him. And by the time they and Sven had helped to dig him out, he was barely alive.

In the years she had known him, Anna had marveled at Kristoff's ability to sleep just about anywhere. In a barn. In a field. Early on in their marriage, Kristoff had proven himself adept at lying comfortably on the floor as well as the mattress, and had even struggled in becoming accustomed to sleeping without Sven by his side.

"I'm glad you're home," Anna sighed happily as Kristoff crawled into bed with her. He pecked her lips once.

"It was just a jaunt up to the Trading Post. No big deal."

Anna smirked. "Oaken try and sell you his sun balm again?"

"I knew there was a reason I hated that crook," Kristoff mumbled into his pillow. Husband and wife both laughed, though the former's felt forced. And Anna noticed.

"What's wrong?"

Kristoff bit his lip. He could never lie to Anna. He had found himself fibbing to his sister-in-law with difficulty, but to lie to his wife? No way. "I... had an audience with Elsa today."

Anna blinked. "How is she? Did she request it? Receipt of subjects is usually on Saturdays."

"No, Elsa bumped it up on the schedule. I heard the staff whispering about how she was antsy in her cabinet meeting. Didn't take long to find out why." Kristoff swallowed heavily, moved. "She's worried about us. About how we haven't had a baby."

Anna's reaction was unexpected. She burst into laughter. When Kristoff gave her a funny look, she settled down and shook her head.

"It's just Elsa being my older sister. I think it's sweet, but you heard how we handled everyone asking about it at the Fall Festival. All good things to those who wait."

"No, you don't understand - she was _really_ upset about it. Like about-to-burst-into-tears upset about it. She seemed almost paranoid."

"Awwww..." Anna crooned. "She's a sweetie. What did you tell her?"

"I told her not to worry."

"Exactly what I would have said." Anna pecked his cheek and turned out the light. "Elsa's always been protective, Kristoff. I've learned to just embrace it."

Kristoff nodded once, then settled down beside her.

* * *

It was late at night when Elsa departed on her horse from the stables. Arendelle slept soundly, and the only person who knew of her departure was Kai.

"I should be back by morning," Elsa had told her Chief of Staff as she readied her saddle.

"Your Majesty, surely you think it's wise that I accompany you? At least allow me to send an honor guard!"

"I'll be fine, Kai. I have my horse, and my powers. And... this is personal. Family matters."

Kai had nodded. "As you wish, milady," he acquiesced. "But I strongly disagree."

No one could ever say that Kai wasn't loyal. But if he had his own counsel, he would give it to you, unsolicited.

Elsa galloped fast and hard into the mountains, a thin trail of frost blanketing the chilly grass in her wake. The grass soon turned into rocky terrain, punctuated by boulders growing larger and larger in size. When Elsa spied the first hot springs, she knew she was getting close.

At last, the Queen reached the familiar clearing, and dismounted. "Grand Pabbie!" she called tentatively. "I wish to have a word!"

For a moment, there was silence. Then the surrounding boulders began rolling of their own accord, forming a circle around the royal. The boulders soon unfolded and gasps went up from the mountain trolls. Elsa knew her brother-in-law had been raised by trolls, but the sight never ceased to amaze her.

"It's the Queen!"

Bulda, Kristoff's adoptive troll mother, knelt at Elsa's feet. "Your Majesty! Such an honor it is! How does my son fare?"

Elsa frowned. "He hasn't visited you?"

"Not for a few weeks yet; his travels don't take him up this far at this time in the year. When the fjords freeze," Bulda promised.

Elsa nodded. "Kristoff and Anna are well. But I must speak with Grand Pabbie."

An elderly troll, the de facto leader, approached through the parting crowd. "To what do we owe the pleasure, Your Majesty?"

Elsa gulped. "Grand Pabbie, I am concerned about my sister and brother-in-law's inability to conceive. I fear that... magic might be at work."

Grand Pabbie's brow furrowed, and he waved his hands. Lights appeared in the sky, flashing shapes that were barely decipherable to Elsa. Grand Pabbie was searching for something, it seemed. An image of two young women, in an embrace that Elsa recognized all too well. And then - nothing.

Grand Pabbie turned back to the Queen. "Elsa... I fear that when your sister's heart froze, it altered her ability to be fertile."

Elsa's own heart nearly stopped. No... her sister was unable to have children... and once again, it was all Elsa's fault.

"It is _not_ your fault," Grand Pabbie countered her, as if reading her thoughts. "And your sister will surely not lay the blame at your feet. But... I am afraid a baby will not be possible."

Elsa racked her brain. If what Grand Pabbie said was true, Anna would be unable to carry a child to term. But...

"What if someone else did?" she blurted the question out, and the trolls looked to each other in confusion.

"Your Majesty?"

"What if someone else bore the child?" Elsa asked. "Grand Pabbie... if I asked you to use your magic... to place a baby of Anna and Kristoff inside of me to carry, could you do it?"

"I feel quite confident of it," Grand Pabbie assured her. But his eyes betrayed that he was wary of the idea.

Elsa squared her shoulders, her heart alight with hope. Her mind was made up. "I will bring Anna and Kristoff here soon, and we can arrange it. May it be done to me according to your will."

Grand Pabbie bowed his head, the die cast. "As you wish, Your Majesty."

And with that, Elsa galloped furiously down the mountain for home.


	3. Chapter 3: Use My Body

**Chapter 3: Use My Body**

Elsa found her brother-in-law in the stables early the next morning, serving Sven his breakfast. The Queen leaned against the stalls for a moment and just watched him work. Kristoff worked himself hard, and he had never had an easy life, growing up in the mountains as he did.

When Kristoff saw her, he smiled. "Good morning, Your Majesty. Sleep well?"

"Better, yes, thank you." Elsa nodded. "I, um... I was hoping you and Anna would accompany me on a visit today?"

"Of course," Kristoff agreed. "Where to? The villages?"

"The North Mountain. Well, just below it. I was hoping we could visit your family."

Kristoff quirked an eyebrow as he filled a bucket with Sven's carrots, surprised. "Really? They'll be so thrilled!" he grinned. "Like Christmas has come early! I gotta tell Anna!" And hugging her, he raced away back towards the castle. Elsa watched him go, biting her lip. She only hoped that he and Anna would understand the real reason for their visit when they got there.

* * *

The royal family took Kristoff's sled up the mountain. Olaf had insisted that he tag along, despite Elsa's reluctance. But when they magical snowman had looked like he was going to literally melt into a puddle in tears, the Queen didn't have the heart to say No.

Kristoff's troll family was overjoyed to see him, and Bulda predictably doted on Anna. The family interactions were a little overbearing, but Anna had learned to take it all in stride. Elsa accepted Grand Pabbie's hand in greeting. "Your Majesty."

"Grand Pabbie. Remember what we discussed?"

Kristoff and Anna heard this even over all the clamor. "Discussed what?"

Elsa straightened her shoulders and prepared to tell the truth. "I visited Grand Pabbie last night. He believes that Anna is infertile due to my freezing her heart."

Kristoff and Anna's mouths simultaneously fell open.

"I'm sorry I kept this from you," Elsa apologized. "But I have been so worried. And I have found an encouraging solution." Smiling, she took Anna's hands in hers. "I wish to carry yours and Kristoff's child. Use me as a surrogate vessel. That is, if you'll have me."

Anna gasped, her eyes filling with tears. Behind them, Kristoff looked from one sister to the other, deeply moved. "I..." Anna bit her lip. "Elsa, are you sure?"

"Yes. I want this. These are my wishes, and I will accept my fate whatever it may be. Grand Pabbie can place the baby inside me."

"Magic?" Kristoff stared.

"Magic," Elsa confirmed.

Kristoff gulped, and looked to his surrogate father. Finally, he nodded. "All right. If you're sure, Elsa."

"I am," Elsa smiled.

Grand Pabbie bowed his head. Waved his arms. The air on the mountain seemed to heat several degrees, and Anna and Kristoff staggered as energy seemed to be pulled from them. The energy enveloped Elsa, lifting her into the air slightly, until moments later...

The Queen swooned and floated safely back to Earth. A shocked Kristoff quickly caught her, Anna placing a concerned hand on her sister's forehead.

Grand Pabbie looked to Kristoff. "Check on her continuously. But... the magic should not fail."

And with worried glances, but also hope, the royal family departed back down the mountain.

* * *

Elsa was put to bed upon arriving home. She continued to dictate orders from her chambers, and occasionally found the energy to move about the castle when she was of the mind to. On some mornings, as her belly grew rounder, staff would find the Queen wandering the halls of the castle, caressing her baby bump where her unborn niece lay cocooned within. The nesting state of their ruler left many of Arendelle's subjects buzzing with gossip, entranced by the mystery of it all: their beautiful Queen was with child. But by whom? No one had ever seen Queen Elsa with any male suitor at palace balls or other holiday functions. The Queen almost always attended these alone, and if she _was_ there with someone, the man on her arm was usually Kai, her Chief of Staff, and everyone knew how _he_ swung in matters of sexual relations. In some extreme cases, when Anna, the Princess, was away on business, the Queen would platonically attend a ball on the arm of her brother-in-law. But for the Queen herself, as far as her people knew, there was no paramour or mistress of any kind or either sex. No romantic candidate immediately came to mind. Though Arendelle's people knew full well how Elsa had come to be expecting (or at least, they _thought_ they knew), the identity of the father - whoever he was, and even his very existence - left them baffled. Was the Queen having a passionate affair? Nobody had an answer. And then there were the whispered mumblings of the Queen that some servants had overheard - how Elsa would contemplate her swelling stomach and whisper, in a mixture of happiness and awe, "I'm going to be an _aunt_!" Not _mother_ \- _aunt_.These quiet whispers had never been confirmed, though. Regardless of the exact circumstances, Elsa's progressing condition demanded that she rarely leave the castle, or see her subjects; this reality made the rumors swirl all the harder, harder than snow flurries.

One morning several months later, Kai summoned Anna and Kristoff to the Queen's chambers; the Queen wished to speak with her family. Only a trusted inner circle within Elsa's staff knew definitively that she had fallen pregnant. But as to how or by whom, like the rest of the kingdom, even these staff were kept in the dark. It mattered not that rumors of the Queen's condition had spread to the general populace - leakers happened all the time, especially now that the castle had opened the gates and become a freer channel of communication than during Elsa's parents' reign. But how her condition came to be... _that_ was to be a secret kept between the royal family, for the time being at least.

"Now, Your Highnesses, when you enter, I must ask you not to cry. It might distress her," Kai warned. The couple looked at each other in concern. Elsa's midwife ushered them in, Olaf following them. Sven tried to enter, but when he failed to fit through the door, the reindeer had to content himself with poking his snout through the entryway.

"Her Majesty has been feeling a little weak this morning," the midwife told Anna and Kristoff. The pair slowly approached the bed, in which Elsa was propped up with pillows. The roundness of her belly could be seen under the bedclothes.

"Hello, Anna, how are you? And here's Kristoff - hiya, handsome." Elsa's smile was strained as she kissed Kristoff's cheek. Then, she took her sister's hand, and placed it over her own swollen belly. "There is death," she murmured, the look in her eyes suddenly far, far away. "And there is new life."

They all left the room sobbing. Anna was particularly distressed to see her husband openly weeping. In the years she had known him, Anna had seen her husband become emotional a grand total of once, and those had been happy tears, on their wedding day.

"Our baby is killing her!" Kristoff moaned. "We never should have agreed to this."

Even as she too sobbed, Anna placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "This is what she wanted. She's trying to give this to us. But... I can't choose between my baby and my sister, Kristoff, I just can't!"

"Then let's hope we won't have to," Kristoff told her grimly. He vowed that they would have both their child and their sister... or neither of them.

* * *

_The Queen's face was contorted in discomfort. Tears streaked down her face, and she wailed out in agony, **"ANNA! Help me!"**_

_Kristoff appeared, speaking soothing words that were indistinguishable against the sudden, piercing cries of an infant... _

Kristoff sat up sharply in bed, panting. Sweat glistened across his body, pooled down into his eyes, and he felt the strangeness of this sensation acutely. For someone who had grown up in the frozen wilderness, Kristoff was particularly unaccustomed to warmth. Anna's embrace and her love, her gentle smile, had given him a warmth he had never known he needed, a warmth he now craved. But this... cold sweat (that wasn't very cold at all), this... powerlessness... It shook him.

Swinging his legs off the mattress, Kristoff tried to grapple with the nightmare about his pregnant sister-in-law. He didn't have the heart to wake Anna; she would surely panic if he told her. So he elected to don his bathrobe and plod down to one of the living quarters in the Princess's private residence.

Unbeknownst to him, his wife sensed him leave. Anna stirred, rolled over against the pillows, just in time to catch a glimpse of her husband slipping out the door in his bathrobe. She sat up, frowning with concern, and followed.

She found Kristoff in their sitting room, a blazing fire going, despite the lateness of the hour. Kristoff was staring into the embers, his face masked and unreadable, almost brooding. A solemn, serious, stoic countenance that Anna knew belied inner turmoil. He sometimes got that way while ice harvesting, especially on expeditions that held a significant degree of danger. Kristoff was a man who knew how to live dangerously and come through alright in the end, but that didn't mean he was impervious to stress.

"Kristoff?"

No response for a moment. Anna knew he would come to her, but only if she prodded. He had tried before to keep secrets from her, for her protection, and they both learned quickly that it didn't work, no matter how well-intentioned. She sighed. "Kristoff, how can we be married if we can't be honest with each other?"

That got him. He grunted, "It was only a dream."

The dismissal, that suffer-in-silence attitude, did little to deter Anna's probing. "Bad?" she prodded gently.

"Like the ones I used to have about my birth family, just after they abandoned me."

"And?" Getting Kristoff to open up about his own pain was akin to pulling teeth, but Anna was nothing if not persistent.

Kristoff coughed slightly, a sign of discomfort. "And it was about Elsa."

"Elsa?" Anna blinked. _Not about me?_, she thought.

Another brief silence, and then. "The Queen... she dies in childbirth."

Anna gasped, a hand going to her own stomach, as if she herself was pregnant and feeling the changes in her body that her sister was surely feeling in her stead. "And the baby?" _Our baby. _

Yet another pause. Kristoff shook his head. "I don't know." Their tiny unborn heir's future was uncertain.

Though shaken now herself, Anna tried to banish these dark thoughts. "It was only a dream," she echoed firmly. "It couldn't possibly become real."

Kristoff barked out a laugh, sounding almost bitter. Or maybe he was just trying to brush aside any lingering naivete. "I used to think magic wasn't real, until I met your sister. You really think this is any more impossible?"

"Elsa's strong," Anna countered flatly. "She'll deliver our baby, and we'll all be a family together, just like we wanted." She crossed to him, placed her hand in his. "Come back to bed," she entreated gently.

And finding comfort in her touch, Kristoff followed her.


	4. Chapter 4: More Than Just the Spare

**Chapter 4: More Than Just the Spare**

Elsa's screams woke the whole castle in the middle of the night, on a warm spring evening late in her pregnancy.

Kai worked hard to sequester only the most necessary individuals in the Queen's wing of the palace, and summoned Anna, Kristoff and Olaf as quietly as he could. The trio had to be content with waiting outside Elsa's chambers, jumping every few minutes at the door banging open to let midwives in or out. Currently, no one except for trained medical professionals and Elsa's bodyguards got past Kai.

"Can we go in?"

"No," Kristoff shot down.

A pause, and then: "How about now?"

"Olaf - _enough_," Kristoff growled, his teeth set on edge. Beside him, Anna bounced her leg nervously; it was a wonder that she wasn't begging to be let inside along with the blabbering snowman. All they could do was watch the doors and hope that they could see their family member. At last, Kai poked his head out.

"Sir Kristoff, if you'll please come with me..."

"Why can't I come?" Anna asked almost indignantly, springing for the door even as Kristoff confusedly rose to his feet.

"Her Majesty does not wish you to see her in such a state, Your Highness. She has been asking for Kristoff." Now the Ice Master was even more confused, and even Kai appeared a little suspicious, curiosity nagging at him regarding the command from his Queen. But Kristoff obeyed Kai's orders, squeezing Anna's hand soothingly even as she tearfully begged to go with him.

"I won't let anything happen to her, Anna - I promise." Kristoff cupped her face and kissed her gently before following Kai back.

* * *

Whoever coined the phrase, _Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned_ was wrong. Dead wrong, Elsa decided. The phrase should be amended to say_ Hell hath no fury like a woman's childbirth. _

The pain. The unimaginable pain. It was worse than anything the Queen had ever experienced, and Elsa knew pain. Had had more than her fair share of it in all of her 27 years.

How strange - for there to be so much pain to bring about, to know, so much love. Well, let it be. If Elsa succumbed to that pain to gift her family with a child - an heir to the Arendelle throne - so be it. Anna would make a fine Queen. And she would have the baby there, to care for and teach. If only Elsa felt she had the will to stay and see that joy. But right now... she wasn't so sure.

Her knuckles turned as white as the snow and ice at her command, as she needed to grip the blankets and ride through the agony, writhing and screaming on the bed as the midwives flitted about. It was coming... it had to come soon... Through her hazy vision, Elsa could see Kristoff enter, hustled over to her bedside. Her gaze earnest, Elsa found Kristoff's hand and nearly crushed it in her own; she had to admire how her brother-in-law did not wince at the discomfort she was surely giving him.

"If I don't make it... tell Anna... I LOVE HER!" Elsa wailed through the last as another contraction set in.

It was an order from his beloved Queen and sister-in-law that Kristoff hoped he wouldn't have to follow.

The midwives encouraged Elsa to keep pushing, announcing that they could see the baby crowning. Kristoff stood back in awe as, with a final scream, Elsa slid the baby out of her. The midwives immediately scooped the infant up and handed her to her father.

"It's a girl."

Kristoff bounced the baby locked in his arms. He held her out towards the bed so that Elsa could see. "Elsa... this is Sierra." It was a name that Kristoff and Anna had discussed many times - a name after one of the North Mountain's contemporaries, high over the land of Arendelle.

Elsa's vision swam, blurry, as she took in her niece. A love as strong as the one she felt for Anna rippled through her.

"Beautiful," she croaked, her voice thick with emotion. Then she passed out.

Kristoff had to wrestle with Kai and some of Elsa's bodyguards as they none too gently forced him from the room. Several agonizing minutes later, the midwife came out.

"Your Highness, you may come in and see the Queen. She is tired, but alive and happy."

Anna burst into tears of relief. She ran into the room, Kristoff and Olaf right behind her, and threw her arms around her sister.

"Thank you... thank you, Elsa... I love you!"

Elsa smiled weakly. "I love you, too, Anna."

* * *

The minute Anna and Kristoff placed Sierra in her arms, absolutely nothing else mattered.

Not her powers. Not the fear she had had over herself. Not the possibility of never knowing love, or how much it could thaw.

For Elsa now knew love. The sheer power of it - more powerful than any snowy gust of wind or any icicle could claim, far more powerful than anything that anyone could take away from her - nearly made the Queen weep. For this - _this_ was love. And it was love that had brought this tiny perfect creature here. With her. Elsa's little niece was so beautiful, so... immaculate, that Elsa knew right away that if anything or anyone threatened this tiny child... Elsa would hurt them. A lot worse than Hans. And a lot worse than she had (indirectly) hurt Anna. And Elsa would be well within her rights. Gods, could people really fall in love so fast, at first sight? Elsa supposed she now knew the answer, as she kissed the infant's forehead.

"Hi. I'm your Auntie," she crooned, bouncing Sierra a little. "I'm also a Queen, and I rule over a kingdom. But you... _you_ will rule over my other kingdom: my heart. I love you so much!" And her voice cracked with emotion at the end.

And that's when Olaf, Anna, and yes, even Kristoff, lost it. The royal family embraced and wept with happiness.


	5. Chapter 5: Three Years Later

**Chapter 5: Three Years Later**

"I will send a battalion of my best soldiers to guard your fields..." Elsa was promising one of her subjects. The wolves were really bad this summer, wandering down from the mountains to threaten some Arendelle farmers' crops.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," the farmer bowed his head gratefully.

Kai suddenly entered the throne room from a side door and whispered in the Queen's ear. "If you'll excuse me," Elsa apologized. "I must have an audience with my niece."

Most everyone present in the throne room was dismissed. Then a nurse entered, holding the squirming toddler in her arms. "She's been asking to see you all morning..."

Sierra scampered over to the throne. "Auntie Elsa!"

"Hi, sweetheart!" Elsa beamed with love. Sierra scrambled into her aunt's lap. She adored Elsa, and Elsa doted on her.

"Auntie?"

"Yes, baby?"

"When will Daddy be home?"

"He's still harvesting in the mountains, honey. But I imagine he'll return soon." Kristoff was required to hike high up the North Mountain during the summer months. It was a particularly dangerous season, as the heat of the sun loosened the snow on the peaks, increasing the risk of avalanches.

"And Mommy?"

"Mommy's ship will be docking the night after next." Elsa had sent Anna as an ambassador to the nearby Spanish kingdom of Corona, to discuss trade routes with their cousin, Rapunzel. Elsa smiled as she squeezed Sierra close. "Until then, you belong to me."

Sierra giggled. She did not yet know that it was her aunt who had carried her in her tummy, who had brought her into the world. That was a story she would be told when she was older, and the whole kingdom had done well to keep this secret, upon the whole story coming out at the announcement of the little Princess's birth. In the ensuing three years, Elsa had offered to go through the pains of labor again on behalf of her sister. Kristoff and Anna had gently refused, saying that Sierra was all they needed. Her parents were so grateful for her, but they feared that a second pregnancy would put Elsa in even more danger.

And Elsa was content in this decision, as Sierra asked her, "Do the magic! Do the magic!" Elsa rolled her hands, conjuring the ball of ice into thin air.

"Ready?" Elsa grinned.

Sierra nodded, and Elsa sent the magical flakes into the air. As aunt and niece played in the conjured snow, Elsa was at peace in the knowledge that her family was complete.


End file.
